Kevin Pietersen was hailed as the world's best batsmen after his one-man show put England in command of the second Test against Sri Lanka at Edgbaston.

The assessment came from none other than Muttiah Muralitharan, who was brutally dealt with during an innings of 142, as Andrew Flintoff's men opened up a 154-run lead on first innings.

Pietersen's second hundred in as many knocks this summer was then built on in the final session as Sri Lanka closed on 86 for four. Remarkably his brutal contribution dwarfed the next best score of 30 in the Test to date.

"I have played against so may aggressive batsmen - Brian Lara, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Sachin Tendulkar - and I think he (Pietersen) is at the top of the world because the way he is batting he has got everything in his armoury," Muralitharan said. "He has more power than any other player and his natural talent is to be aggressive - if he lost that he wouldn't score runs.

"The way he plays he takes his chances and most of the time he succeeds - his record is unbelievable."

Pietersen's fourth century took his overall tally to 1190 runs in 13 Tests, spanning less than a year. Without doubt the pick of Pietersen's 20 fours and three sixes was the reverse sweep off Murali which flew over the ropes at midwicket.

"It was a very naughty shot that you won't see again for a while," Pietersen said. "All of the boundary options were closed and I thought it was my only one."

Murali had his revenge when he trapped England's number four leg before in the same over on his way to a six-wicket haul. "Sometimes it looks like I pick him but I promise I am pretty clueless," said Pietersen, whose biggest previous failing was being unable to reach three figures when set.

"I am happy I am converting my scores, which I didn't do in the winter," he said. "I kicked myself when I got off the plane from India because I didn't get a hundred there. I am just trying to set myself high standards and perform to the best of my ability."

The team may also prosper while Murali rued the below-par 141 the Sri Lankans mustered after winning the toss.

"If we had scored 300 runs we could have England under pressure but we did not take advantage," he said. "With a 150-run lead, the way the pitch is behaving, you don't know what might happen."